A Life Taken
by Heart of a Panther
Summary: When Dovewing was found after nearly being crushed by a fallen tree branch, the Clan thought it was a miracle.  Then Dovewing woke up with no clue who she was.  Someone is attempting to kill the Three, the question is, who is it?


_As a challenge, I decided to write about Dovewing, though she is one of my least favorite characters. Hopefully writing this will make me like her a bit more. _

_This chapter is not told from Dovewing's view, though the rest of the story will be._

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><p>My mission was easy enough. Or at the very least, it was less complex than my previous assignments. Master's orders can be very taxing and stressful at times. But this time it was simple.<p>

There were three cats I was ordered to murder. Two toms and a she-cat who were all a serious threat to Master and his plans. They needed to be taken care of, and I was lucky enough to be chosen to do so. Make their death's appear accidental, I was told, make it look as though the forest had decided to end their lives, not a cat. Of course this made my job a bit harder, but not impossible.

I decided to go after the she-cat first, the one Master called Dovewing. When the three's powers were explained to me, I knew it was essential to kill her first. A cat who could hear a mouse's pawstep and see what was happening to others a very large distance away? She would be able to sense what I was doing before I could finish her off. If I tried to kill the others first, she may be able to hear me in my attempts and reveal my existence.

Yes, she would have to leave this world first.

Her death would be the hardest, I had to carefully plan it out, there was no room for mistakes. I searched each of the trees in the area that the Three lived in. I was looking for some weakness in any of their branches. It was a thick branch I wanted, one that, when dropped upon some unfortunate life-form, would kill it's target. But something of that size would be impossible for me to cut down by myself, nature would have had to have done some work too.

Soon I found what I was looking for. An oak tree nestled on the edge of the territory possessed a branch that was the half the size of a cat's middle. It was broken off most of the way from the tree, there were just enough rotting fibers to keep it from separating. Simply putting my weight on it would make it fall away.

Now to lure my prey to the trap. She had to come alone, I couldn't have witnesses to this, they may look up to find me in the tree. But just how could I get her alone? The branch would not hold on for much longer, there was no time to waste.

They go on hunting patrols through their territory, I knew. I just had to wait until I saw her. I hung in a tree just outside their camp, waiting for my target to appear. Soon I saw her, but she came with two extra cats. I had my plan, however, I just had to hope it worked. I followed them through the woods, being sure to keep out of sight and downwind so they wouldn't smell me.

When they got to their hunting spot, they starting fanning out. I followed Dovewing until she was far enough away from the rest of her Clan members. Her nose was high in the air, no doubt trying to find some scent. But she wouldn't smell me, as a cat anyway. I had killed a rabbit earlier and rubbed it's scent all over my pelt. Blood stained my black fur, but that was a plus. How could a cat resist injured prey?

I rustled the ferns lightly and Dovewing turned to where they sounded. She bent to a crouch and followed me as I led her away from her Clanmates. Luckily we didn't have far to go. I rubbed some of the rabbit's blood on the undergrowth for her to study as I climbed the oak. When she was directly beneath me, innocently sniffing the red coated brambles, I let my hindquarters fall onto the branch.

I remember how she looked up when the wood started to crack and splinter away. How her eyes widened in horror. She was froze in fear, unable to move away as it fell upon her body. I think she may have even glanced at me as I regained my balance in the tree, not that it mattered.

Dovewing didn't even make a noise, which satisfied me even more. A good kill is a silent one. I could see her crumbled body just below the dead leaves still clinging to the branch. Part one of my mission was complete.

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><p><em>You made it! Review please?<em>


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